Mail-bag catching and delivering apparatus.



H. W. BROWN. HAIL BAG CATOHING AND DELIVERING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION rum) JULY 29, 1908.

901 ,1 50. Patented Oct. 13, 1908;

3 BHEETB-BHEET 1.

Smut

Henry W Bro wn.

H. W. BROWN. HAIL BAG GATOHING AND DELIVERING APPARATUS. urnmumn FILED JULY 29, 1.908.

901,150. Patented Oct. 13,1908.

H. w. BROWN.

MAIL BAG GATCHING AND DELIVERING APPARATUS. APPLICATION r'lLzn JULY 29,1908.

901,1 50. Patented Oct. 13, 1908.

mnntoz Henr WBmwn wihmaou /Z y n NRY wi. snows, or RICHARDSON,.MISSISSIPSRI.

To a/ll whom it may concern:

B -it knownthat I, HENRY W. citizen-.91. the United States, residing at Richardson, in the county of Pearl R ver, State of Mississi pi, have invented certain new andusefulmprovements in Mail-Ba Catching andflDelivering' Apparatus; and

do hereby declare the follow'in 'to'be a full," clear, and exact description of t e invention, such as will enable other skilled in the art to which itappertains -to make *and use the same. v

The present invention relates 'to improve ments in mail be catching and'delivering apparatus, and it as foiits'principal' object t e provision of means --for effecting the transfer of a mail bag from a moving "train to the. receiving station, and viceversa, such transferbeing effected automatically-in both 20 instances'as the train passes-the stati'onl Tothis end,-such apparatus, whether carriedby the car or located at the station, com prises, in brief a vertical support provided with; ripper and lower swinging arms arranged toengage the mail bag, and a catcher carried by: said sup-port and :located between said arms, which latterareretained in o era 'tive position by the weight of the maxi bag engaged therewith, and are swung IIIt-O'VQI' 9 t icalp'osition, by the action ofa sprin fiirk' rnediately upon the'removal' of theinail bag.

The invention. further resides in the particular construction of the catcher, and inthe attachment to each end thereof, ofas ring arranged for engagementwi'th the mai bag,

' to retain the latter in the seatin which it received upon its removal from t-he supportt e referred embodiment of the nven-' 40 tion i's'i 'ustrated in the accompanying draw- 'mgs, in which'corresponding parts are desig-= nated by the same reference, characters throughout the several views,

.Of the said drawings,.Figure 1" is aper- A5 s .ective view of the com lete -'-invent1on. E ig, 2 is a plan View. thereo Flgs. 3 and 4 are side elevations, respectivel of thede- 1 transfer -of the mail vices carried by the car and a y thecrane located at the receiving-station, illustrating the position of the arts thereof a'l'ter the. ags' has been effected. Figs; 5 andfiarepla'n views, respectively, of the car and crane carried catchers.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, 1 designates generally the car, 2 the door wayformed in one of the sidesthereof MAIL-BAG carcrmvc AND nnmvnnme aminates;

I Specification of Letters intent.

Application filed July 29, 1908. Serial Nansen;

' and-3; the bar to' which thesii p i I" BROWN, a v

projecting the requisite dist -Each short rod 7 which isfdisposed if ali'iiemen tf therewith and jextends beyo'nd e iefdutw or, forward end thereofin "position 'fonenga e ment with the rin s whit ifare-seeuredtoft e ends of the mailag in -the usual manner. The arms 5 are normally forced} inopposite talposition When the mail catching device's hereinafter "escribeg secured, said barbelngfastened. toion'e preferred manner' and hairin other of-the Side walls 'of tli'edqor way 'in ny- A d in order to maintai' said and catching devices ln'properp'ositionf I The supporting devices by which "zeXrnail bag is! carried prior to its transfertotheape paratu'sat the receivin statijon, I consists psi;- marily of a verticallyd centrally to the outer en t pair of arms 5 secured totheends of saidr in'such a manner as to per'mi 'jtheir'jii ire-f ment in vertical planesinto'} -"out "of 'libii;

zontal position, the inner ends; "of-said" having a pivotal connection with for; ends. To effect the requisite connection, the

ends of the rod are bifurcated,-and the inner.

ends of the arms are reduced, so as to'fit in:

were; 13, et;

isposed rod {secured "of the bar .3, an'd,a'

said bifurcations, the'pivot-"boltsextending through registering openings formeidfinf the rod ends and in'the-ends'of the a such- Points o arm 5 above referred towrarr esj a,-

directions, owing to the tension-"thereag:ains't of the ends ofa stiflleaf spring 8 securedce "trally to the rod 4, the pressure of-tlie spi'ingl holding said arms in approximately horizoh with the rods 7.

ag is enga The catcher which is likewise securedinter T.

mediate its'ends tothe ou'tr endof the bar-3" is formed by a horizontal'lf disposedsteel" rod '9, whose ends are proyi' ed withgintegral 'hook-sha ed extensions 10', the-outer rmorbilll 1 0 each hook projecting ='be end *the corresponding end of- Saidbar -9 -T "eifo'r ma-f tion .of these extensions thus results the provision of 'seats 12 arranged to receive-the? mail bag according as "the-trainia proaaheeri "105- 'the'station from one sideor theo' er. delivered mail bag is retained in place'in its seat by means of a 'sprin arm 25 which'extends thereacross thereeing such a spring, in connection with each extension &S.Wlll'b6 understood.

The complementary apparatus located at the receiving station is carried by a crane latter, as stated, are dpivoted'to the ends of f the vertical rod 4, sai

comprising a vertical post 13 braced in any desired manner and provided with upper and lower arms .14 pivoted thereto intermediate their ends, the rear end of each arm havi pivoted thereto one end of arod 15, the other ends of said rod extendin into the bore of a 'vertical pi e 16 connects to the post 13 by upper and owerbrackets 17.- The last-mentloned ends of the rods 15 are connected by a retractile coil-spring 18 which is disposed within the pipe 16 the tension of said spring normally forcing the rear ends of the arms 14 towards and the front ends thereof away from each other.

At its forward end, each arm 14 carries a rod 19 which projectsbeyond said end' and is adapted to be passed through the ring at the corres onding end of the mail bag e transferre to the car. The length of -the rods 19 is suflicientto dispose the mailbag'last mentioned, in position to be engaged by one or the other of the hooked extensions 10 of the car-carried catcher, according to the by the numeral 21;

'whole, is held in horizontal or operative posidirection in which the mail trainistraveling.

' The crane catcher is formed'by. aT -shaped block of wood or steel which rojects laterally from the post 13 and has tihe free end of its stem hinged to the latter,--as indicated I This catcher is disposed midway between the arms 14 and its stem liesin the vertical lane of said arms. The cross. arm .22 of t e catcher has its ends formed with inwardly extending notches or bifurcations 23 which, provide seats adapted to receive the'mail bag removed from the carcarried' apparatus. 'Across each of these. seats or notches projects a spring 24 similar 'to'the springs 25 already described and provided for a similar purpose. The outer legs 26 which are formed by the bifurcations or notches'above referred to, project be ond the inner legs 27, as shown. The catc er, as a tion' by means of a lvi ire 28 secured at one en'd thereto and at theother end to a cord 29. which ispassed around the post 13 adjacent the 'up-;

per. arm 14.

In the operation of the invention the.mail

bag delivered from the car tothe apparatus at the receiving station has its rings engaged with the rods 7 carried by the arms 5 which arms being retained in position by thepressure or theends ofthe spri 8 thereagamst "tlthesame time, the posta clerk'in charge e l apparatus at the receivin' station engages the mail bag to be delivers to. the car Wlth the rods'19-carriedby the crane arms '14, and-'subsequentl en-' gages the upper end of the wire-28 wit the cord 29. As the train passes thestation, one j moved therefrom by the correspondi end of the cross arm 22, the last mentione mailbag being received in the seat 23 formed in said end, in which position it is retained by mail b however, is suflicient to reak the cord ggove referred to, whereupon. the catcher will swing downwardly against the side of the post, carryi the mai b with it. As soon as the mail ag is remove the rods 19, t ecoil s ring 18 will cause said arms 14 by which said rods are carried, to swing into vertical being causedb the spring-8,, whose 'endsbear a ainst t e arms 5.

manner, held against displacement By the corresponding spring 25, said spring is well as the spring 2 4, flexing. sufiiclent the removal of themail bags porting arms to permit the mail bags into the seats. From. the foregoing from tilesu automatically as the train passes t e receiving station, and that both transfers take effect at approximately the same moment. Furthermore, the delivered mail .ba" s are held against accidental displacement y the spring arms 24 and 25.

What is claimed is:

member; upper and lower arms 'eret'o and arranged for swinging supporti v pivoted th rod carried by each arm and projecting beyond the front end thereof,- the projecting ends of said rods b'ei arra ed for engage: .ment with the rings 0 a mtii? havin its opposite ends connected with sai arms, or normally forcingthe same, and said ro s away from each other, to hold the mail a y-disposed catcher secured armsand' extending at right a les to the lat? ter, and to said member, 'eac end-"of said seat andwi livered bag in place therein.

in presence of two witnesses. r

y j HENRY W'."BR.OWN. Witnessesi' i I B.F.SM ITH,.*---

or the other of the hooked extensions remove the mail be from the rods 19, while I the mail bag carrie by the rods 7 will be re-' from position, a similar effect,

The mailbag. caught y the hooked extension 10 is in like passage bf t e.

s5. 'it will be understood that the transfer of both mail bags is ected 4 A mail bag catching and delivering apparatus. comprising, in combination, a vertical movement in a common vertical plane; a

-ba digfilacement from 'said ro.ds;'

an oriaont to said supporting member between said,

the adjacent spring 24. .The' wei ht of the catcher b'ein 'pr.ovided.with a bag-receiving f ti a member for retaining a de-f In testimony whereof, I aflix my signature, 2'

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